Posted on June 11, 2025 in ASRC News, Neuroscience Initiative
A new study by Graduate Center researchers looks at the impact of in utero exposure to both extreme heat and a natural disaster.
Climate disasters may be leaving invisible imprints on developing brains before birth, according to new groundbreaking research from The City University of New York Graduate Center (CUNY Graduate Center) and Queens College. Scientists discovered that children whose mothers experienced Superstorm Sandy during pregnancy showed distinct brain differences that could affect their emotional development for years to come.
The study, published in PLOS One, reveals that prenatal exposure to extreme climate events, particularly when combined with extreme heat, appears to rewrite critical emotion regulation centers in the developing brain.
“We’re seeing how climate change may be reshaping the next generation’s brains before they even take their first breath,” said lead author Donato DeIngeniis, a CUNY Graduate Center Psychology Ph.D. student. “These children’s brains bear invisible scars from climate disasters they never personally experienced.”